ASUS ZenFone 6 flipping camera has a durability surprise

ASUS has long been at the sidelines when it comes to smartphone news but its latest flagship could very well help put it back on the map. With certain core features like headphone jacks going away, the phone’s mix of high-end specs and that 3.5 mm port could become a rarity this year. Its selling factor, however, is really its flip camera. But with its unique motorized mechanism comes concerns about durability. Fortunately, JerryRigEverything’s Zack Nelson was curious enough to buy one and put it to the test for the rest of us.

In light of that camera, the rest of the durability test is almost boring. Good thing, then, that nothing spectacularly bad happens. Everything is as it should be and the ZenFone 6 remarkably passes all scratch, burn, and bend tests.

Nelson naturally couldn’t resist testing the flip camera’s durability on its own. With a motorized and hinged construction, the phone is almost begging to be tested and broken. Fortunately, that, too, also ends on a high note.

No matter the hand-driven torture it is subjected to, the ASUS ZenFone 6 camera remains intact and functional. It does seem to have problems lifting the phone up to fold down when the phone is flat on its back, but that might not be a common occurrence. And if the phone does fall from a certain height, the camera quickly retreats into its cutout for safety.

That said, while the ASUS ZenFone 6 is indeed an impressively durable phone, it does have one weakness. Because of all those moving parts, it can’t be certified to have dust and water protection. ASUS does ship with a specially-designed clear case but that will provide only minimal protection from the elements.